Monday, January 12, 2015

Lotus is back at Stage AE next Friday,
January 23, touring in support of their new album, Gilded Age.
It's a more conventional rock album from the group, whose previous
releases have been heavy on the synths. Tracks like “Out of Focus”
trade between post-rock swells and downtempo drumbeats, while earlier
numbers are the danceable, guitar-driven variety you've come to
expect from Lotus. (The band says the mood of Gilded Age
is one of “reflective happiness.”)

The
band visited Stage AE last February, and it was one
of the first shows we took photos of in 2014. At the time we were
struck by how much the band and the crowd fed off of each other's
energy: “while it's certainly normal for a band to feed off the
energy of the crowd,” we wrote, “by the end of this show the
entire pit was dancing in communion with one another, their tempo
rising and falling with the music like the bars on an equalizer.”

Lotus at Stage AE, February 1, 2014.

It's rare that a band can fuse rock and
electronica in a way that doesn't leave you wishing that they'd just
focus on just one or the other. So while Lotus are generally referred
to as an “electronic jam band,” you'll have to see them for
yourself to be able to make a true assessment. (As a matter of fact,
when
we interviewed the band's bass player, Jesse Miller, he disavowed
the “jam” label and all the baggage that comes with it.)

We have a pair of tickets to give away
for the show. To enter, email your name to pghmusicreport@gmail.com,
and put “Lotus” in the subject line. We'll announce a winner
Tuesday, January 20th.

Opening is semi-local jamrock band The
Werks. They recently released a new live album recorded at Mr.
Smalls, which you can download
for free on their Bandcamp page.